Symptoms of Phobia
by AiriKatsu
Summary: This phobia causes his emotions to go on rampage; he has nothing or no one that can calm the terrors of the rain. Suddenly everything is the enemy, everything is dangerous... Especially the visitors from Konoha. LeeGaara
1. Astraphobia

'_It was just like every other day'_ was what he told himself.

He had to pretend like every drop that hit against his window wasn't some form or torture in this purgatory. The happenings outside of his suddenly cold office didn't bother him in the slightest, or at least this is what he wished. He had to sign all the paperwork, organize all the mission papers, give written consent; all of these things just as he had every other day of the year. The only problem with this day was; at that current moment he wanted to just curl up in a ball in the corner of his room and ignore the rest of the world. It wasn't like his room was any safer than his office, he still felt so vulnerable in the room with its huge glass window that overlooked the village.

He tried to distract himself with stacking a neat pile of freshly signed papers on the corner of his desk. At that exact moment a bolt of lightning lit up the sky and illuminated the room with an intense shine. His hand jolted and sent the papers slipping across the floor, he could only watch as they fluttered and twisted in the air. His mind seemed to be reminding him of that time, a small hint of a memory that he had locked behind a mental barrier was slipping through.

He snapped out of his stupor and quickly jumped out of his chair to go collect the papers and get back to his tedious job. At that exact second the thunder quickly snapped through the air like a whip and caused him to lose his balance. The fear that tore through his body sent him tripping over the chair and landing heavily on the floor. He had curled his arm underneath him to stop the blunt of the fall, but instead only succeeded in knocking most of the air out of his lungs in one swift hit to his solar plexus. As he lay on the floor trying to catch his breath he tilted his head up to glare at the papers, blaming them for this disgraceful accident and hoping that they would burst in flames any moment now.

The sand in the gourd beside his desk swirled around unpleasantly as it sensed the pain of its master, but Gaara frantically held it down and settled it. He slowly tested his arm but lifting himself up off of his chest with it, but with one more crack of lightning it trembled and collapsed beneath him. Sweat trickled down his nape, and he pressed his forehead to the floor taking in deep and hopefully calming breaths. He knew he needed to pull himself together, he tried to comfort himself in the thought that the rain would be over soon and everything would go back to normal. No matter how much he tried to hide from it the rain would always come around this time of year, and after so many years of living there he thought this phobia would have died with _him_.

He sat himself up quickly and reached for the papers with more ferocity then needed, and as a result many were crumpled in his grasp. Never before had he ever shown anger, especially now as the Kazekage. It was the mere thought of his late father mixed with the thunderstorm outside that put him on edge. He was still waiting for him to show up and ruin the carefully tidied life he had managed to obtain, sending him back into his old ways.

He stared down at the half he had managed to acquire that were within his reach and felt himself losing his grip on reality as those harsh memories slipped into his vision. His eyes glassed over and pain slowly filled into them, making him feel weak as the insecurities reached the peak of his tolerance.

He barely had time to register the brisk tempo of heels hitting the floor in the hallway outside his office before there was a gentle knock and then the knob slowly turned. When a blonde poked her head through he felt himself tense up, and never before had he been so intimidated by a woman who had no fighting skills whatsoever. He held his breath and watched her, hoping that she would finish her business and leave before his mind could taunt him with her reasoning for being there.

She was just his secretary, just the happy blonde with the girlfriend, she was no threat.

He cleared his throat when he saw her give him a funny look, but she simply wrote it off and came into the room fully whilst carrying a very prim and perfect looking folder. The contents made the inner thoughts of the redhead cringe with what else she could possibly be bringing him. But her first words weren't about the papers or about her supposedly important folder, no, they were more along the lines of... "Um, Gaara-

sama, what the hell are you doing on the floor?"

His voice came out more strangled than usual, but if she noticed she took no action to assure him, "Picking up the reports, can I help you?"

She was once again reminded of the reason she was there, her face perked up and she reached into the yellow piece of cardboard and pulled out one solitary document then held it out to him. He frowned when he realized she was expecting him to get up onto his feet and get it, but with his body acting as strange as it was there was no way he could make it to his knees. He glanced at the ground and saw that some of the damn pages had made it to her feet, so he quickly improvised. "Can you pick up those papers there?"

She frowned prettily but still bent down to retrieve his precious sheets, and then glided over to him and knelt down near him with a smile. She then carefully reached into her pocket, catching his tensed expression, and pulling out a pen. She handed the one page to him and then the writing tool.

He glanced at her, "What is this?"

She rolled her eyes and sighed in obvious aggravation, "My vacation notice, you need to sign it before I leave for Konoha tomorrow."

He felt a shiver run through his whole body at the mention of leaving, something felt off, and his paranoia was currently taking over his brain. "Why are you going out of... never mind" He cut himself off and realized that he probably had not right in asking her that. He was also feeling as though he could not trust his voice any longer when the last word became lodged in his throat.

Her eyebrows furrowed, and although she knew she didn't have to tell him a damn thing, she still felt a bit of sympathy for him. She knew there was something wrong, but instead of prying in his dilemma she figured it was an inner demon he needed to face. She really didn't have a problem with telling him anyways, but instead she was reminded of the fact that he didn't have any significant other, and her telling him stuff like what she was planning would probably go over his head... Or would it?

"I'm going to see my girlfriend, she lives there." She paused and placed a slender finger to her cheek in thought, "But you know Gaara-sama, you've been looking kind of tense lately...?"

Gaara has lost all ability to move, he could only stare at her as his mind registered her words and the possible meaning behind them. She looked at him expectantly, but her smile turned a little more mischievous when he appeared to be _very_ uncomfortable with the topic. "Maybe it's a sexual tension? You know you should really go for some of the guys around here..." She tilted her head and raised her eyebrows suggestively, "You know what they say..." And she paused as if dramatically reading it from a textbook, "'Guys should know how to please other guys and girls should know how to please other girls', if you get what I mean." She winked and then grabbed the signed document and high-tailed it out of there before he could register her words. But before she left the took a quick glance at him; Gaara looked nothing short of a -little- disturbed, if she could read his expression more clearly she would probably assume he was embarrassed as well. So far she could only see a crinkle in his brow that she usually saw after Temari left the office, normally yelling back something about his lack of a girlfriend.

During her little speech he felt himself slowly lifting his body to its feet and sitting down at the desk, he had to thank her one day for giving him the strength to do that. Surely she did that on purpose just to make him feel all the more awkward. She must have heard his conversation with Temari a couple days ago, and the heated debate that he was sure his sister had alarmed the whole building with. Now he could hardly contain his nervousness, and he looked down for the first time to notice all the sheets he had been so blindly scared to pick up. He hurriedly glanced at the slightly curved one and pulled it out of the pile. After reading the contents he let it drop into his lap and leant his head back.

Of course, of course he was coming tomorrow...

He turned his head to glance out of the window at the pouring rain, praying that it would be gone by then.

He succumbed to his body's need for rest and folded his arms on his desk, then rested his forehead in the cradle they created. He closed his eyes for the lack of a better view, since all he could see was the edge of the sturdy wooden desk, and concluded that he didn't need all of this right now. Perhaps he could get someone to fill in for him while he took a stress leave? He had never taken a vacation or sick day before, so he was sure he deserved it by now. Perhaps as soon as he knew Aomi, the secretary, had left and the Konoha ninja that were supposed to visit were there he would just disappear for a few days.

He exhaled an incredibly loud breath and squeezed his eyes shut tightly. The darkness that met his eyes gave his stressed out mind the screen it needed to remind him of all the problems he had been having lately.

Temari and Kankuro had been making strange insinuations about how he needed to find a suitable girlfriend that could help him get his so called life back. He didn't see the need for such a thing, and even though he was curious as to what the big deal about going out was he had neither the patience nor the time for it. Love wasn't something he understood, and no girl would put up with that for long. They all expected their lovers to know what they were thinking and to grow telepathic powers over night; it was something he just couldn't do for another human being.

He had never kissed, gone out with anyone in a 'girlfriend/boyfriend' manner, he hadn't scoped out girls with his brother or even thought of what sex may be like. Or perhaps that last one was a white lie- but he hadn't imagined doing anything with a specific person, it was more of curiosity and musings. He thought that perhaps one day there would be someone he'd find attractive and want to be with, but thus far it wasn't working out so well. Upon confiding in his brother that he had never found any girl even remotely interesting or attractive the alarm was raised and somehow this little tidbit got back to his sister. The woman had become confused in his lack of attraction, and then came to the conclusion that she would need to find him a girlfriend.

Which lead to his next problem; the Konoha ninja that were stopping in Suna for some reason or another –he had been too distracted to read the whole report- were the ones he did not need to see. Well to be more specific there were two he did not want to see for two completely different reasons. A group of four, Sai, Sakura, Tenten and...

His arms slipped from their position and he let his head hit the desk with a dull thunk, then he turned it to glance at the clock on his desk that informed him it was twelve in the morning. Had it really been two whole hours since Aomi had come in? Why were these thoughts causing poor work ethics to develop? He lifted himself up into a sitting position and ignored the bright flash that lit up the room. He also grabbed his arms to hide the shiver that prickled his spine harshly.

It wasn't as though he had a problem with the fourth group member, it was just that now he felt as though he never knew what to say to him. After writing letters back and fourth to each other for quite some time, he had begun to notice the strange feeling that tickled at the back of his subconscious growing whenever he thought of him. He couldn't explain what caused the feelings to blossom lately, even though they had met many times before and talked, it was something that he found very 'strange' about writing letters to someone else, especially since now they had just begun talking about their pasts and problems with each other.

The relationship was normal, and Kankuro had assured him as much, but even though they had been talking for about a year using simple replies back and fourth he had been thinking lately about certain things. Most of these thoughts involved a topic that he had yet to understand. The after-shock of thinking those ideas had lasted him all week.

He had never known what stemmed from friendships like these, and a small but curious part of him wanted to know if maybe this was the way 'a relationship' started out. Wasn't that what Kankuro has once 

said to him? Relationships start when the two people in them decide to talk about themselves and connect on an emotional level. Or at least that was what he read aloud from a textbook after his younger brother had been pestering him all day.

He had been wondering lately why these musings plagued him so. He didn't know why he was so interested in how the other person looked now that they hadn't seen each other in a good year and a half. Was there a reason why his stomach fluttered when he noticed a letter addressed to him in that style of writing? Was this normal behaviour for friends, or was it a precursor to feelings developing?

Was he looking too far into it?

These things confused him, much more then the feelings of neglect and hate he had always been sure would be a part of his life. Now he was driving himself insane trying to analyze what all these alien thoughts meant, and where or when these thoughts had spawned from. He hadn't replied to the last letter, one that asked him about, ironically, if he had a girlfriend since the last time they had seen each other. He didn't know if he should be offended by such a direct question, since he knew in society it was a personal question. However, they had been speaking for a while now, and it was innocent, so he shouldn't have had such a complicated reaction to it. He could no longer ask his brother about it, because he was sure that it would, once again, get to his sister somehow.

'_Maybe it's a sexual tension?'_

He leaned over and went back into the position he had been in before with his arms crossed and his head resting there. He felt his eyes grow heavy but regardless of the voice of reason that told him he should go home and sleep, it only took one loud bang to resolve him into staying there. Now he had time to think about all that had been straining him lately.

No, he knew what kind of tension this was; this was the tension that happened every time around this time of year. The one that the blonde girl hadn't been around to witness before, the paranoia that hit him so hard sometimes it knocked the oxygen from his lungs and reduced him to a petrified child. It was funny that during the time when he was so young that he could never understand why rain was so bad for him, and then all it took was for him to get soaked once for it to sink in. As he grew older he began to notice the distinct differences between sunny days and cloudy ones...

He was beginning to drift off and all the fear that had been keeping him awake drained out of his body and instead decided to get him during his only other vulnerable time. The time he had just gotten used to having and appreciating...

Sleep and dreams.

/

He didn't remember how he got there; he didn't remember what had happened before that moment. What he did know was that the sound of the rain pounding against the window was a cause for alarm, and if he stayed there he would be safe. He wouldn't be hurt; they wouldn't be able to get him as long as he was still dry...

The sound of footsteps made him realize that he was crying softly, and that his head had been pressed into the knees that were drawn to his chest because he snapped his head up quickly. It seemed like an eternity of hearing those loud echoing steps, and each one caused fear to strike up his spine like a drum. He was shaking so badly that he felt as though his body would fall apart if he didn't hold it like this. He didn't know what he had done wrong to deserve this; he wasn't sure why the sand hadn't stopped that ball from hitting him that day. What he did know was that his father saw it, and the grin that had appeared on his face had rocked his son to the core and made him run all the way home.

For the rest of the afternoon he had concentrated on wringing every last ounce of water out of the 

extension of his body, he had even changed his clothes and dried off his hair. Now he hid between the wall and his bed, praying that no one would come looking for him... even if they did enter the room, they wouldn't find him on first glance, maybe they would take a quick glance and then leave? The arm that had been hit with that small, wet, rubber ball began to burn. He held his breath and quieted his sobbing. The need for survival was taking over, and he knew that as long as they couldn't hear him he may be able to get through another day.

He looked over to the window and felt another tear slide down his face, _Why?!_ He mentally screamed at the precipitation outside. _What did I do to you?_ He was just a child, why should he have to worry about his father trying to find a way to kill him? He didn't understand why things had turned out this way, he now knew how an abusive child felt when they knew their living nightmare came home. The hiding may be able to save them, maybe if he could just disappear from sight, maybe if he just closed his eyes and willed it away then the rain would stop.

Then he wouldn't have to fear for his life.

Hushed words were whispered outside of the room, but for some strange reason they rang loud and clear as if they were breathed against his ear. The feeling made his stomach begin swirling and his shaking to double in magnitude. He pressed his eyes shut and tried to block everything out...

"This is the perfect opportunity... We can finally be rid of this monster." The other voice sounded gleeful, "that will teach the brat for killing Yashamaru..."

The feeling in his chest doubled in size and began choking him, he couldn't hold the sniff that held back the building tears. His grip tightened so much that his knuckles grew white and his legs began to pulse from lack of blood flow. Nothing could compare to the searing white hot pain that was stabbing at his chest repeatedly, like with every pulse of his heart it was another knife being driven in.

He wondered if dying would really be such a bad thing...

"Just do the job quickly, make sure he's good and dead before you leave." His fathers words held no emotion, except for a rushed sort of excited sound to them. Young Gaara had always known that this was strange behaviour for normal families. He used to watch the children in the parks with their parents, they didn't have to worry about this, they didn't have to worry about everyone waiting for the moment to kill them.

"Are you sure you don't want the honor yourself?" Suggested the other voice sinisterly, and there was a snigger that could be detected in the undertone of that question.

"Of course, but you deserve it."

His face was smashed into his kneecaps, and he stopped breathing when the doorknob opened and creaked open eerily.

"Oh, little Gaara-chan." Said that strange new voice in a sing song manner, "Come outside to play, Gaara-chan?" There were loud footsteps that entered the room, but by the sound of it they were walking around looking for him, "Don't worry, the rain won't hurt you..." there was a chuckle at the end and then the sound of kunai being rubbed together viciously. "Come out, I know you're in here..."

/Hush now, I'll kill him, don't you worry.../

Gaara stopped breathing and green eyes snapped open in his younger dream self. Ka-san? He called out, unable to distinguish the voice as anything he had heard before, but it was so comforting that he couldn't know any other word to call it.

/Yes, Gaara, just let me out, you won't have to worry any more, I'm fine now./

"Ka-san?" He cried out frantically as he caught sight of the man in a jounin vest.

"Found you, brat!" A large hand reached for him from the side to lift him out by his hair, but before he could grasp even a strand a bit of sand wrapped around his arm and slowly grew larger in volume. It snaked it's way around his arm and ignored his startled cry. "YOU TOLD ME HE NO LONGER COULD USE IT!"

There was a quiet curse and then the sound of someone walking away.

"WAIT! KAZEKAGE-SAM-..._**AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHGGGGUYA**_!!-"

/There, there, don't cry.../

He rocked himself forwards and backwards again and again, trying to lull himself into a dull state of mind. The only problem was he knew the liquid dripping down his arms and hair wasn't water...

/

Airi: Hello everyone, and welcome to the first fiction I have completed since…

Um, I'll get back to you on that.

So this fiction will come in three parts- as soon as I finish tweaking around the last two chapters until they're just perfect. I have it done, but I don't love it yet.

Point to this fiction? Nothing. Actually I don't even like Naruto anymore, but I guess these sort of fandoms write themselves and I really had no say in the batter. I would have a mini spaz over how retarded Naruto Shippuuden is but I just don't care anymore.

Name change? New year, new hell, new personality. I don't think I've changed too dramatically, however, my outlook on life and everything has changed.

You can tell by the writing, if you pay REALLY close attention.

I am also currently torturing myself slowly, I guess reading old reviews will be my downfall… But, whatever, I promised I'd get help, and I am.

Therapist believes I have…. /counts/ six personality disorders, I find this humorous.

Neh. On to making the rest of this story look good…


	2. Pluviophobia

"G...ra...?"

He shifted and then settled again, still not completely out of his dream-like state, once again a voice called him but even though he was slightly more conscious he chose to ignore it this time. Finally after a louder one he began to remember that voice, it was something he felt like he hadn't heard in forever, but who did it belong to? It was right in front of his face, taunting him but not releasing the information. The voice had the opposite effect then waking him up, for the first time since he had fallen asleep he felt calm and he was sure the voice was a product of happier dreams soon to come.

"Gaara-kun, please wake up... I would hate for anyone else to see you asleep like this..."

He jolted awake and sat up quickly to see a very real person standing before him, one that he had been thinking of avoiding all last night. What time was it? He grabbed for his clock and brought it close to his face to make out the numbers through his cloudy vision. He rubbed his eyes and blinked multiple times to see the hands once more, and wished he was reading it wrong. There was no way he had slept in past nine...

But those clock hands still betrayed him, and stubbornly stayed on nine thirty, he could do nothing but stare and kind of gape at the object before him and the information it was showing him. He felt panic like never before, when he realized that he had done exactly what he hoped he wouldn't do, and that was meet him face to face, and fall asleep while at work. He squeezed his eyes shut and noticed that it was much darker than it should be at nine in the morning, so he said a silent prayer and then slowly turned.

The only think that met him was thick water lines on his window and the sound of even harder drops hitting it. It meant that it was raining harder than ever before, and he was still caught in his very real nightmare world. He spun around and took in the appearance of the other person in the room and noted that they were very wet...

The sand would be able to attack if the other person was wet, it would become wet instead and therefore be useless...

His breathing came in short and his eyes widened, what if...?

What if Lee had only been sending those letters to get close to him, then when the time was right he would be sent to come and- No, no Naruto and Tsunade would never allow it. But what if he really was mad at him for all those years ago and wanted him dead? Did anyone see him enter the building, if there were no witnesses he could leave and no one would guess. Konoha and Suna were allies, and if he hadn't told them of his plan previously then.

"Gaara...kun?"

"What?" He snapped to attention and flinched when Lee came a step closer and waved a bit to snap him from his thoughts. He took a step back and hit the front of his chair, causing him to loose his balance for a second. He quickly straightened himself out and shot the other boy a very dark look. "Can I help you?"

"I... well... figured..." He saw the redhead tense when he went to raise his hand to scratch his cheek. He felt his heart sink at the guarded look the younger male had, and he wondered if it had been smart to volunteer to go and give the kazekage the report of how long they would be staying and the details of their mission.

He was also ashamed to admit that he kind of wanted to see the person he had been writing to for all these months, after all, he must have changed in appearance somewhat. And he had been right; Gaara did look different, and after looking him up and down the taijutsu master really wished he hadn't thought to look...

The red hair was still as unruly as ever, but even though he had just been sleeping with his head to the 

side it was still perfect and fell back into place easily. It was a bit longer and skimmed past his ears almost halfway down his neck. His jaw was finally thinned out after losing all his baby fat, and gave off a very attractive shape. His face still held an ethereal beauty and Lee felt envious of the very handsome features that the other boy was blessed with. Although he hadn't grown an inch, his body was defiantly showing more muscle then the last time they had met, and those clothes didn't help either.

He was sporting a very light black long-sleeved shirt that clung to his skin and had a larger open neck. He found himself staring at the skin that was revealed just an inch below his collar bones before tearing his eyes away and promptly reminding himself that this was no time to be giving the strange thoughts he had been having flight. He couldn't see the pants but he was sure they were hidden under the hem of the shirt and more then likely the same color. There were no Kazekage robes, and instead of the sight he had expected to see when he walked in the office, he was given something completely different.

Never in his wildest dreams had he ever considered Gaara to be a 'waking up late' type of person, even though it was only a few years back that he could not sleep at all. Instead he saw him as an early riser, someone who woke up just to watch the sun and then start their day. He felt the similarity between the two of them in the back of his mind but quickly diverted his attention away from 'comparison'. He was sure that was dangerous ground...

During one letter he remembered reading a sentence that told him sunrises were very red in Suna, and that Gaara had been writing the letter during said time. Which made Lee automatically assume that Gaara's first order of business that day had been to reply to him, and that made him happy. He felt such a strange amount of joy as he considered that maybe he was pretty high on the 'list of importance'- especially in such a busy schedule.

He now wondered if his initial thoughts about their friendship had been wrong; did Gaara only reply to him to be polite? He couldn't remember how the exchange had started- oh, right. Naruto had told him 'Gaara says "Hey', he was asking about you...' which made him feel compelled to reply and say "hey" back. So hadn't it been the sand user who started the whole thing anyways? He didn't know for sure, but what he did know is the look of suspicion and edge to his penpal's voice. He wondered if he should bow out gracefully now before he said something he was sure would anger the boy before him, in fact, any sudden movements seemed to set him off...

He tried out his voice again; finding the silence smothering, "I was just here to tell you how long we would be staying, I assume you read the mission details and..." He trailed off, hoping this was enough to satisfy the Kazekage so he would stop looking at him like he should attack him. After a few terse moments the redhead's shoulders lost some of their stiffness and he went to take a step around the offending chair, opening his mouth to speak.

"I understand- uh...Wha-?!"

BOOOOOOMMMMMMMM

Everything seemed to slow down, to a snails pace for the taijutsu master, he had watched as Gaara began his manoeuvre around his desk and then tried not to notice the halo of light that surrounded the figure and outlined him in a brief flash. He felt a small wave of relief that he had made it into Suna before the worst of this had hit. It wasn't until the loud bang that rocked the very tower they were in that he knew something was wrong, the panic that lit up the other boy's face was not normal for someone who was tripping over a chair leg- no, he looked like he had just been stabbed in the chest without any previous warning. His foot stumbled over it's initial obstacle and rolled over itself with a popping sound. Gaara's whole body went frozen for a second as it registered the force of the thunder and the pain.

Lee was already on his way before the Kazekage crumpled to the ground.

It was the loudest one yet, and he couldn't control the insane fear that had crippled him and caused him to loose his balance and land on his foot wrong, he closed his eyes in an allowed moment of anger at 

himself, and then felt his whole body twist into the fall. He was waiting to land on the ground- and his already sprained (or worse, but he didn't want to consider that) ankle, but for a moment he was floating.

Until he realized that two arms had wrapped around him, one on the small of his back and the other clutching his arm as to give him a bit of space. He was still kind of suspended with his knees half bent to fall, but he was able to regain his footing before his shoulder made contact with a warm, solid wall. He stood there, as if waiting for another spasm of thunder to hit, but all he felt was the dull after effects and a throb in his foot that made him inwardly groan. He cursed everything at that moment when he was getting his bearings.

And then real fear seized him when his mind promptly reminded him that someone had caught him, _and_ there had only been one other person in the room, _and_ they had been all the way across the room and made it there within a half a second to not only support- but _catch_ him. The force of this information made Gaara breathless, and for the second time in twenty four hours he felt in danger due to another human being. But this time it was different, he could not stop the waterfall of thoughts spilling over the dam.

One prevailed above the rest-

Lee was TOO fast, and as it stood with this speed he could easily get past the sand.

It wasn't a factor of how _wet_ he was, but now he knew that if the taijutsu master really wanted to he could damn well snap his neck before he even knew it had _happened_. Not only that, he had nowhere to run and he was currently in the arms of said danger.

Despite the horror that was coursing through every nerve of his body, he couldn't help but stop at the thought of 'in the arms of'. He felt confusion drown out all other feelings- even those alien ones he was starting to recall when he read the letters- and really sink in. The sprained ankle died away into the back of his thoughts as he just took a moment to feel it, the weird swirl in his stomach that spun out of control every time the hands moved an inch and how comfortable he felt. This was the feeling that had intensified recently; this was ten times worse then what he had felt the first time they had met.

He snapped out of it as soon as he was in whatever 'it' was and concluded that the hysteria of the thunder was the thing that was leaving him breathless and searching for any human contact to support him. There was no way Lee was doing this on his own, Lee... was just Lee. Nothing else. Even as he tried to tell himself- and roughly pushed away in order to strengthen his resolve- there was nothing there but the phobia of thunderstorms; he couldn't deny the swirl faded as soon as the touch was relinquished. He also failed to remember that with the shock came weakness, and his shove had probably only seemed like a stabling hand to someone as strong as the Konoha Shinobi.

Strong- it shouldn't be right that the word 'strong' and 'Lee' meant something other than physical strength to him- and in the span of three seconds he had gone from confused, to worried, to downright euphoric, and back to startled again.

He couldn't handle this many changing thoughts at the same time, as each emotion fought for dominance he realized that he was stepping back on his bad leg- and all those ideas stopped when he let out a hiss of pain and his legs turned into jelly for the second time.

And for the second time, Lee caught him.

Except this time he grabbed his hand and yanked him forward so his face was pressed right into the curve of his neck and shoulder blades. In a whoosh of air and a slight 'oumph' Gaara was pressed up against the object of his bewilderment in a way that probably would not look as innocent as it should be to someone else. Especially since he had put his hand on the chest before him for support and now it was stuck between their closely approximated bodies.

Two ideas won out over the others:

This is _nice_, and this is _bad_.

And as he was trying to sort himself out, Lee had decided to -_damnit all_- speak. He was already saying something about 'not using his leg because it might be broken, and Sakura should have a look at it. And something in there was about moving to a less crowded area'- he liked that one for no reason he could currently understand. What he did know was he didn't want to move, even though terror still slid through his veins like thick honey, and that Lee smelt kind of nice. His smell was like the woods captured and clinging to his skin like a perfume, there was also a hint of sand, dew, and dried blood.

Then it occurred to him, the thing that made him grab onto Lee's shoulders and force himself away with such brutality that it was almost like Lee had scolded him like fire. He felt himself push into the desk and leaned heavily onto it for support as he stared at the other boy with frantic eyes.

Lee was still wet.

"Gaa...ra?" The voice was uneasy and concerned, and he saw the other's eyes dart down to his leg and could almost see the calculating look in those amber eyes. It would be nothing to kill him now, even if the sprained ankle was a pretty good indication to a fight, and he could put up no defence that the other couldn't get through. This was it, there was no way he could escape on foot- if he even had a chance in outrunning Lee- and the sand couldn't transfer him far enough with the rain hindering it's process. He was useless, alone, and within the reach of someone who was wet and insanely strong.

He could no longer remember how to breathe.

"Gaara?!" A hand reached out for him that he recoiled from, he looked down and squeezed his eyes shut, wrapping an arm around his middle and folding in on himself slightly. At least if he died the last thing he heard was that voice saying his name.

The next few moments were dead, and Lee couldn't help but think that the redhead was waiting for him to do something, but what could he possibly do to help someone who kept on pushing away from him? He had just been saying he should take Gaara home when he had been shoved against so hard he almost faltered in his step. What was wrong? Did he do something that made the kazekage this upset? Surely his last letter had not come across rude or out of place?

He went back to the first moment he had entered the office, how restless he had seemed even in his sleep, and then the look of absolute horror on Gaara's face when he had seen him and then turned to see the rain. It was almost as if he had not been expecting either of them. And then he had lost his balance- only after the extremely loud thunder...

"Did you need to go... get some air or something?" He tried nervously, not too sure if he needed space or just something to clear his mind. "I could help you to the door, I'm sure this office is pretty stuffy or-"

"Why?" It was almost a snarl, "So I can be even MORE helpless then I am now?!"

Outside for fresh air meant the rain, didn't it? So what else could he have taken out of that offer?

And he understood, water, of course. He closed his eyes and rolled them behind his eyelids. It suddenly explained everything, didn't it? How could he be so blind- he had seen the effects water had on Gaara's sand way before now, so why would rain be any different? He paused to look down, and with a knowing smile he looked up again. He saw the guarded and frigid appearance of the other and couldn't believe that the kazekage considered HIM a threat.

"Water." Was the solitary word he offered in explanation.

And an acknowledging look flashed in those aqua orbs before he slowly nodded.

He had to look down to hide the hurt that had exploded in his chest. Suddenly the air was smothering and it hurt to breathe, he couldn't understand why someone as powerful as Gaara could see him as an enemy. Better yet, after all the things they had gone through, why would he have a reason to hurt someone who he considered a friend. At least, he assumed that Gaara thought of him in that manner, after writing letters for a year it was almost expected that the title came with it.

He felt the anger and betrayal build up in him as the seconds dragged on with nothing to fill the gap. The Kazekage wasn't trying to defend his assumptions, which made it even worse. The fact was obvious to anyone; sitting there plain and clear for him to see. Gaara had thought of him as an enemy. He shouldn't feel as wounded as he did, he should just wave this off and offer a smile or something, but he felt like he had lost all chance to get closer to the younger male. All those hopes for a closer relationship were draining away, and in their absence left a self-hatred.

"What were you thinking?" He whispered softly, his round eyes slowly raising to meet startled green ones. His voice was low and cold, and his eyebrows furrowed, emphasizing his distain. He didn't know what he hated more; the fact that he had been excited to show just how he had improved since their first fight, or wanting to see someone so badly only to have your intentions doubted. Wouldn't' his present strength be a reassurance to Gaara, instead of a threat?

Gaara glanced to the floor, trying to decipher the meaning behinds those words and he could no longer stand the look he was receiving. He didn't' know why, but all those hysterical irrationalities faded away into the grey of the morning. He wanted to reach out and just touch him for a moment, like if he did he would be able to prove to the both of them that he wasn't scared of him. He trusted him.

'Sexual tension…'

His eyes widened and he shook his head to clear that thought. No, why were Aomi's words repeating in his skull like a mantra. There was no way he was stressed because he was attracted to someone he barely knew.

But he did know him, perhaps not as well as his teammates did, but he knew his personality and some of his likes and dislikes. Wasn't that were it all grew from? The urge to feel that swirl in his stomach and warmth was overpowering his fear… but then…

C-CRACK

He jumped and fisted his hands so hard that he was sure his nails would cut his palm open. He closed his eyes and counted slowly to ten, beyond annoyed with himself and the way he was reacting. He should be composed even just as the kazekage, his personal problems would come later. He opened his eyes and realized that he was expected to speak, but when he opened his mouth no words would form in his mind or on his tongue. The way he was being looked at for that split moment in time made him feel hot, and he felt a wave of heat hit him and cause him to shiver. He didn't' know what he had just witnessed, but it had disappeared just as quickly as a blink.

"I…" He took a breath to compose himself, "my apologies."

He knew that there should have been more, he should have justified himself.

But he no longer knew what he could say.

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Airi: Well, screw it, I uploaded the second chapter right away. The third part still needs work so that may take a while.

Nothing to say, but I forgot to mention I own nothing. Characters are property of Misashi Kishimoto.

This is shounen ai, if you didn't realise that before, I suggest you stop reading now...


	3. Philophobia

"Why, I thought we were..." He stopped himself, thinking that the apology should be enough. Instead he focused on something else, the thing that must have been torturing the other shinobi since before he had even arrived in Suna. "You are scared of thunderstorms, right?"

The idea of the great Sabaku no Gaara being scared of anything made him seem so much more human. He could suddenly relate with the frenzy that he was sure must have been pumping through the other like a smothering blanket. He had once been scared of the dark as a kid, so why was he blaming him for something he couldn't control? The disloyalty didn't feel so bad anymore. His gaze softened a little, and he looked sympathetic. "I am sorry."

He watched the other boy cross his arms and gaze towards the window with distain written all over his face, "It's my fault." He locked gazes with Lee, "I should know you'd never hurt me…" He glanced back at the chair that had fallen in their flurry of movement. "You could have killed me in my sleep anyways, but the fact that you didn't should prove your intentions, of anything…"

The room fell quiet again, Lee wanted to say something, but he wasn't sure if anything he said could bring back the comfortable atmosphere they had once shared.

"I thought you were mad at me…" He offered, "I thought I had said something to offend you in my last letter…"

_I thought you were catching on to the fact that I am attracted to you._

"No it's not that…"

_I didn't know why it affected me… I want to figure out why I felt so strange_

"Then, why did you not reply?"

That caught him off guard, he had no response.

In their small exchange, Gaara had moved to lean against the desk with his right hip and cross his arms across his chest. Lee had taken a step forward towards him, and both were outlined by the light coming from the window, no lights were on since neither had thought to flick the switch. It was unbearably uncomfortable, and he wished he had a reason or something to tell the taijustu master.

"I need to leave…" He tried to excuse himself from the room, but a bandaged arm caught him and sent an electric spark down his spine. He slowly turned his head to look at Lee, watching as the determination set on his face.

"Not with that ankle." He gestured down with his other hand, and as if on cue a throb of pain raced up his leg and reminded him that it was there. He felt cornered, but he previous fears of helplessness were slowly fading into the background. Instead of reminding himself that Lee was wet, he began to wonder about hypothermia and catching a cold.

"I guess not." He sighed and leaned heavily on his desk, then simply jumped to sit on top of it with his ankle dangling off. He had nothing to put on his leg, and it was obvious that the other boy had something in mind, so he just watched him in silence. Lee sighed and let his bag slip off his shoulders, then began pulling out bandages and a tensor. Gaara watched with mild curiosity, wondering just how much stuff could fit in that backpack.

He watched him kneel down before him and grab his shin gently to ease off his shoe, he let out a hiss of pain but it was promptly ignored by the both of them. His pant leg was rolled up out of the way to reveal a very swelled ankle that was at least twice it's normal size. He made a grunt of displeasure when Lee started attacking his injury with his hands. He poked around, cupping the ankle and pressing on a point that made the redhead want to rip his foot away and whimper out his discomfort.

"Does that hurt?" Lee finally asked, looking up to find the other boy's eyes watering and biting his lip in obvious irritation. He grinned sheepishly, "I guess so…" He lightened his pressure and had to remind himself that Tenten was used to the pain that came with this check. "I'm sorry." He murmured as he continued his work.

The voice was soft as he responded, sounding almost like he had been screaming a lot as his voice was almost gone. "You have nothing to apologize for. I feel foolish for letting my emotions get the better of me like that." He sucked in a breath as those fingers brushed a part that throbbed in response. "You've done nothing but try to help me. This is my fault."

There was nothing he could say to that, so instead he continued his work. He could have said everything was fine and not to worry but he wasn't so sure anymore. He wondered why touching him like this felt almost intimate, even though he had done the same thing to Tenten a million times and Naruto a couple. Was it going to be like this all the time? He wouldn't be able to touch or see Gaara without these feelings going haywire? What had happened to his crush on Sakura?

He didn't have an answer, and it troubled him that the Springtime Of Youth really couldn't answer this for him. He wasn't even sure if he should embrace this as love or something else akin to respect.

His heart didn't speed up when he saw Naruto or Tsunade, though.

He could ask Gaara, but he had a sinking feeling that he probably had no idea what he was feeling. He wasn't known for his amazing emotional capacity. Whereas everyone thought Lee was always happy, the kazekage was always composed and calm. It wasn't like he could just open up and say 'so, I don't know about you, but I think I like you.' He was sure that would go over well.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a flash of lightning and he froze instantly, waiting to see if the other boy jolted away, but nothing happened. He looked up and saw green eyes staring at him unfocused, and a calm look adorning those features. His head was tilted slightly, and his mouth was slightly parted.

He could barely trust his voice to speak, he was sure if he didn't stop that look he may do something he regretted. "Gaara?" He noticed his voice came out slightly higher pitched.

That snapped the shorter boy out of it.

The eyes refocused and then they blinked a couple times. He leaned down a bit and furrowed his nonexistent eyebrows at something, before slowly reaching down and placing his hand over top of where Lee was tying the last bandage. Both of them felt their breath hitch, and their hearts beat a little faster. The experimental touch lasted only a second, but when he removed his hand the feeling lingered there. He looked down at his hand and it was obvious he was trying to piece something together.

"You… distracted me."

"What?" He was just as confused now.

He watched the same hand fall to the other's lap, and then waited for a response. He subconsciously finished the bandages and was now looking up in wonder. The scene itself probably looked strange, with Gaara sitting on the desk staring down at him intently, and he was on his knee, like he was proposing or-

Bad thoughts.

"You… I was watching the light hit your face-" He felt himself reddening at the intensity that must have come with that look. He felt self conscious now- and a little pleased, "-and then after you stopped working I realized I had just sat through both lightning and thunder. You were distracting me."

He sat there, taken aback, and all he could think of saying was, "…How?"

Gaara shook his head, he didn't know either. But he did know his train of thoughts and he had to look away in discomfort, unsure if he wanted the other boy to know that he was staring at the way his outfit clung to him. He wasn't used to this feeling, and even though he was getting angry at his own lack of knowledge on relationships he was beginning to think he was closer then he thought. Perhaps his thoughts during the past few weeks had led him to this conclusion.

Something about Rock Lee intrigued him, and attracted him to him.

He knew this question was blunt, he was sure someone else could have planned out his question better. He had to know if this was something only he felt, or maybe Lee could explain it to him. He knew that the taijutsu master was no one to judge, and he was genuine with his feelings. If he came out and asked he would give him a serious and honest response.

"Am I attracted to you?"

The answer was delayed for a long time, but he saw Lee swallow and watched the adam's apple bob up and down his throat, transfixed by it's movement. When the other boy finally did speak it was after he shifted to sit cross legged and stare up at him with a sober but apprehensive face.

"I do not know… How would you come to that conclusion?"

Did Gaara even know what he was saying? It was one thing to say you're attracted – or at least think you are- to someone, but for it to be a shinobi from a neighbouring country, and a male at that? This wasn't something that either of them should be thinking about. It was too strange and unheard of; no one had ever attempted it before.

Besides the legal issues; he could not figure out when the mutual attraction between them could have started. It was certainly not there during the chunin exams; Gaara had been someone who had immediately rubbed him the wrong way and he wanted to prove to him that he was someone to watch out for. It had also not been during the fight with Kimimaro- he held no grudges then, but most of the fight he just kind of sat there trembling in awe of how much the sand user had improved in a month. Perhaps during the mission in which they were sent to help Suna was when it began? He could remember feeling appreciative of the man before him then; and already decided he was going to call him Gaara-kun.

He tried to wrack his brains for the moment this started, or perhaps if this really _had_ been instigated from the moment they met. Could there have been something there that hadn't emerged until later? He knew he had liked Sakura since the moment he met her, but did this still count?

He knew for certain that the affection ran deeper around the time that Naruto told him Gaara had been asking about him by name. He remembered the excitement and delight that it was the kazekage asking about him. He had seen Temari around, and always held his breath to see her brother; scolding himself for thinking he could just leave his country for random meetings.

"When I first met you..." He was snapped out of his thoughts abruptly, self-conscious that he had just been thinking about the same thing. "You intrigued me, I think now I can recognize the interest. You were the person I watched during many of the lesser battles. You were very..." He winced slightly, as if knowing the word was going to come out wrong before he said it, "loud, and unlike anyone I had ever seen before."

They both wondered, coincidentally, if that was what had first drawn them to each other. The two exact opposites fighting in a battle that had nearly been to the death- all to make it into the first round of the _preliminaries._ They had torn the stadium apart, going down in history as one of the greatest battles, even before the first round. People still talked about it.

"I could have stayed silent when you attacked my sister," He murmured softly, gazing out the window, lost in memory. "But I had the strange craving to speak to you, see if I could get a rise out of you. Till this day I didn't know why I did it. It was a precursor to one of the hardest battle's I have ever fought." He glanced at Lee out of the corner of his eye, praising him but also feeling a strange amount of comfort that he was the first person to ever hit him. He was glad he could share that one thing with him now; he would always be 'the first to get past the sand armour'. He didn't know why he was happy that someone had punched him in the face as a memento of their first meeting, but he couldn't think of any other way he'd rather have met him.

It made him strange, but since when was that new?

"You were the first person to inflict damage on me. It made you unforgettable. That must have been where the thoughts stemmed from."

"Wait!" Lee threw up his hand in a literal 'stop' movement, still trying to digest all of this. "You liked me since the CHUNIN EXAMS?!"

Much to his bewilderment; there wasn't even a pause.

"That would be the most logical answer." Gaara stole a glance out of the corner of his eye, gauging his reaction as he spoke. "I don't remember a time when I _didn't_ feel this, although, it was only recently that I could identify it with certainty." He suddenly didn't like the look he was receiving, and for what seemed like the millionth time in his life he feared rejection, except this time he was certain it would be harder to swallow.

Numb, there was no way he was coming out of this with anything less than permanent brain damage. Since they were _**13**_ no, he did the calculation in his head, Gaara would have been _**12**_. And here he had thought he was just making fun of him like everyone else who was in the same profession as him.

A small part of his head, probably the dry humour hidden somewhere in there, wondered if Gaara tried to murder all the people he had crushes on. He mentally slapped himself for the dark thought and felt kind of guilty for thinking it; he wasn't like that at all anymore.

He guessed he wasn't used to people admitting _they_ liked _him_. It was ninja-ing his brain, so to speak. His old self, the one who thought no one could love someone as strange as him, of wanted to prove the redhead wrong, say something like 'it must just be that you consider me a very good friend. There's no way you could like me with just one glance'. Even if he seemed like a hypocrite for it, it would make his inner turmoil feel better. Perhaps turmoil wasn't the real word, it was disbelief and scepticism that he had grown up with over the years, especially when the kids he grew up with always took advantage of his being earnest and slightly gullible.

'**Ha, who'd like **_**you**_**? That was some **_**silly rumour**_**, no way to I like someone with **_**such huge eyebrows!'**_

He wasn't so sure Gaara was capable of stringing him along like this, but he still felt a little bit of rage well up. He didn't know what to believe anymore, and one part of him told him he had always hoped this, and the other part of him was saying 'yeah, it's like if Sakura said yes to going out with me- I know it wouldn't happen, but I tried anyways.'

It came down to one thing.

He couldn't accept it.

Gaara was mistaken, it was understandable, he wasn't used to relationships- he had told him so himself- so there was no reason to be mad at him.

But how to respond and make him see the truth without making it sound like he was accusing him or downplaying his feelings? He was sure Gaara was being honest, and even if there was a small chance he wasn't he would back down after this and let it slip under the rug. Like when he tried to use the desert coffin on him in the hospital. No harm done, they would continue on with their lives.

"Well..." He felt the resolve waver when green eyes pierced through him, but he still felt the certainty of his conclusion weighing on him like a stone tablet. He couldn't let lead Gaara to think falsely about this, it was wrong, and not youthful. He would set him straight, even if it hurt him in the process, "It sounds to me like you were just intrigued by my outlook on life, and then when we were able to get to know each other it grew into friendship? Maybe you felt a connection because you knew I was a worthy opponent? After which it grew into an appreciation because I was able to get through the sand armour."

He looked, despite his normal calm expression, shell shocked by this, and was watching him with his skin wrinkling between his non-existent eyebrows like he was trying to decipher it's meaning. It must have been sinking in, he must have been realizing his mistake. He felt his chest begin to hurt with rejection, but he felt it was easier to breathe now that he knew he was getting somewhere.

"You cannot possibly be attracted to me." He felt a knife being stabbed into his chest and allowed himself a moment of self pity before he covered it with a bright smile. "I mean, I am definitely not the most renowned in the look department," he gestured to his current attire, "and I do _not_ dress to please." He kept talking, but he didn't know where all this was coming from. He was unveiling his self hatred all in a few sentences, and wondering where all his self confidence had disappeared to.

It had probably gone by the wayside the moment Gaara had awoken that morning to see him and look absolutely horrified.

He hated this, but it continued.

"You are the Kazekage, I'm just a new jounin, and the difference in our skills is endless." It felt like he was breathing in needles, but the smile was still stuck in place, especially since now he was being stared without an ounce of emotion decipherable on that face. He must be thinking 'yeah, he's right, why did I say that?'.

"You are much more attractive, and any person in this village and Konoha would agree. I have been told I am obnoxiously loud, you probably were not used to it is all and-"

"You don't believe me."

His train of thought stopped with that sentence, and all he could think of saying was 'Huh?'

"It's clearer than ever." He gently lifted himself off the desk and planted his foot on the ground, favouring it and letting the other one rest gently against the desk leg. "I am attracted to you." His eyes held resolve that you normally didn't question.

He was starting to fear the anger building inside of him, this was far enough, without thinking he stood up to his full four inches taller than him.

"You are wron-"

"I may not know all the details, but I'm not stupid. I don't feel this way about Naruto, nor anyone else for that matter. I only feel this way around you, why else would I feel so warm by just seeing you?"

Defensively he pointed out, "You didn't seem too happy to see me when I woke you up."

He almost saw a ghost of a smile grace those lips, "astraphobia does strange things to people..." He stopped to watch him.

He then looked down and hesitantly added, "I don't agree with you." Before Lee could even ask what he meant, he carried on and explained himself; looking so insecure it was alien from what the taijutsu master was used to seeing from him, "I don't believe you aren't attractive, or that being jounin has anything to do with it... I think you're loud, but I guess I have a tendency to gravitate towards loud people. And if that was a roundabout way of saying you think I'm attractive too, then thank you, but I don't think you're right."

He was speechless.

Utterly and completely speechless.

Gaara was getting uncomfortable with the gawking, so he turned his head to the side, feeling the close proximity wearing down his self control. He took in a deep breath and focused on the floor, and not on the fact that he wished Lee would touch him again, except this time without the need to catch him as he fell. He wanted to feel the electricity again, it was growing addictive.

"I've never thought I was even remotely good-looking." He admitted, "I have bruises under my eyes, strange hair color, I'm short, and I'm pale. I look like a ghost." He looked back and saw Lee's eyes softening, he had to look away from the emotion there. It was too overpowering to look at directly. "So I guess we both hate ourselves. That, at least, is normal for any human being." He sighed and closed his eyes, "You would have more reason to hate me then I would you."

It was hesitant at first, but he felt a rough hand trail down his cheek bone to cup the side of his face. His eyes shot open wide and his head turned abruptly in shock, his eyes almost panicked and unsure as to what was happening. His breath fell short and the sand jumped and twisted in the gourd, feeling the change in the tempo of his heart.

The hand moved further and travelled through his hair along the side and then back of his scalp, he shivered with the weird sensations sparking up and down his spine. He could no longer think of anything, and simply watched as Lee moved in closer, feeling the other hand coming to touch his other cheek just as tentative as the first one. The calloused thumb brushed his lip, and he jolted, gasping out a small erratic breath. He was trying to tell himself this was okay, and trying to stop sand from jumping out of its confinements.

After a moment to get used to the touch he recognized the need to pull him closer.

So he did.

Lee had already angled his head so their noses wouldn't get in the way. Gaara grabbed onto the front of his jounin vest and yanked him closer, pushing his mouth against his, unsure of what he should do. He felt the initial shock but then Lee moved his mouth against his and his eyelids slid closed. The hand at the back of his head fisted in his hair, not enough for it to hurt, but enough for him to notice the intensity. His inexperience with this sort of thing didn't help, but he knew what a kiss was, and he also knew that kissing anyone else wouldn't feel like this.

His arms slipped up to his shoulders, wanting him closer still, just to feel more contact. It was like explosions going off in his mind, the thoughts were thrown into a disarray, with no effort in trying to piece them back together. He finally wrapped his arms around his neck and pulled him so close that Lee's knee hit his with the unsteady step, and jolted his bad ankle.

With a hiss the kiss ended, and Gaara cursed his ankle to hell and back again. He closed his eyes tightly for a brief moment and waited for the pain to pass, his arms still wrapped securely round the black haired male.

"Are you okay?" It was a gentle whisper breathed against his cheek, and he felt Lee lean forward and press their forehead's together. "Sorry."

"My fault, it's okay." He mumbled as Lee's other arm trailed down his side and wrapped around the small of his back. Never before had he felt so small, especially while he was pressed against Lee. His shoulders were wider than his, and so was his chest. His hand almost spanned the whole width of Gaara's back.

He felt a little bit of awe for the body holding his, and his ankle faded into the back of his mind when Lee kissed him again. This time the kiss was slightly more aggressive, leaving him gasping for air at the end.

This was all the proof they needed.

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Airi: I had no way to end this, to tell you the truth. So I ended it (unlike me at all) right after the kiss scene. Normally I talk about the aftermath, but I dunno, there was no way I could finish it without it dragging on.

If anyone wants to read the random 'after the ending' ending then look here. If you don't then review please....

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It was a couple hours after that when Tenten decided that a five minute walk would not take five hours. She grumbled as she muttered under her breath about being chosen as the 'representative'. Sai was too busy off in the corner of some building somewhere painting something. Of course, Sakura thought it best that she go find a place for them to stay for the next week, and she blabbered on about needing to go stock up on supplies. Basically she was looking for any way out of finding Lee.

God forbid he got the wrong idea.

The most logical place to start would be his initial destination. She looked up at the Kazekage's tower and squinted at the window. She was sure she saw two figures there, but she couldn't make out any distinguishing characteristics. With a sigh she began her trek through security and useless questions. On her way she was sure to ask if anyone had entered the office, but the only one who didn't answer her with a 'official business only' said 'He sure has been up there a while.'

Assuming this was Lee, she hastened her step a little. Once she reached the final desk that was in her way she was ready to throw shurikens at the next person who asked her to 'state her business.' She was obviously there to try and assassinate the Kazekage, why else would he put up with all the formalities?

She was amused, however, to see that there was no one seated that that last desk, and the sign on it said 'On vacation, go inside.' She wondered if anyone downstairs at reception knew about this. But either way she was sure Lee had been there since before anyone had even arrived that morning.

What time did he leave anyways, six thirty?

At first she had assumed that he was going for his usual run and would be back at seven thirty, but when he didn't come back she knew he was going to the kazekage's office like he said he would the day before. Still, how did a briefing meeting last from eight until one in the afternoon?

She considered knocking, she really did. Especially since she was in another village and needed to show the utmost amount of respect. It was Lee's voice speaking lowly that caused her to throw caution out the window.

And she did, she opened the door. She walked right in and raised her eyebrow at Lee- who was half sitting on Gaara's desk and sipping a cup of water. He looked far too comfortable with his back half turned to the door and his torso directed towards the kazekage. Said sand user was in his chair and had turned his own body to address Lee.

It looked rather endearing, to tell the honest truth. It was like walking in the kitchen and seeing your parents talking about how their days were with genuine concern for the topic.

Lee smiled at her, and stood up fully to rotate and face her.

"Good afternoon Tenten!"

She then noticed the take out containers that were in the garbage can.

Lee had ditched her to have lunch with Gaara.

Sonofabitch.

She placed her hands on her hips, "Here you are, when you should be resting from that assassination mission, having lunch and up on your feet after Haruno had to put two ribs back into place."

The look Gaara gave Lee's back was one of unamusement, apparently someone had failed to mention this tidbit of information.

She wondered if she could embarrass the shit out of Lee or if it was overstepping her boundaries as a guest to the village. She knew what she would say if they were in Konoha. It would probably be along the lines of 'y'know normally people locked up in a secluded office are hiding something, or doing something inappropriate.'

She had to admit, for all the trouble she took in walking up past three sets of security guards they at least could have been making out.

But she couldn't say that, because she could not let Lee know she had been reading his failed attempts at letters that he had left on his desk one evening. She had not been snooping around after Temari had said something to her about Gaara asking how Lee was. She also had not been keeping tabs on Lee just for a certain redhead's older sister to know how their relationship was progressing.

She searched for anything that could be off in either of their attires. But thus far she could see nothing. From the looks of it they could have done anything and had five hours to clean it up.

Ak, bad thoughts, bad thoughts.

"So, are you two going to emerge from this office any time soon or do we even need to book you a room at the hotel?"

Lee sent her a deer-in-headlights look, and she could have grinned from the way both of them took that. She loved the ability she had of making innocent things sound suggestive. And now since she knew they were both thinking about it she had to add.

"I don't know what took _five hours_, but if you guys wanted privacy, Temari has been out with me for the whole day. And I'm pretty sure she said Kankuro was out of town." She turned on her ankle to leave and then casually threw one last hit over her shoulder.

"And, Gaara-sama, we do need him back in a week."

But before she could leave, she heard something she was almost sure she had imagined.

"Then you can pick him up in a week."

She spun around to catch any evidence that she had heard him right, but before she could even open her mouth the sand pushed her backwards and the door slammed shut in her face.

"Gaara!" She heard from the other side of the door, and from the sound if it he was reprimanding him.

"She already knows, my sister has been sending her letters."


End file.
